Chapter 75: Immortal Tablet Suppresses Immortal Tablet (1)
Before the elder’s voice could fall, the Sect Leader Hua had already appeared in front of the crowd. The high-level figures and disciples of the Hua Rong Sect also swarmed around. Qi Huang and Cheng Hong Ling exchanged a glance, then hurried to join the commotion.
“May I ask for what purpose you have graced us with your presence?”
Sect Leader Hua politely cupped his fists and inquired.
“Where is Hua Yu?”
A young man from the Cao family crowd asked lazily. He was half-reclining on a chair with beautiful cotton cushions, surrounded by everyone as if he were the center of attention.
Qi Huang recognized this person as the Cao family’s “little monster” and observed him closely. The man had broad shoulders and a narrow waist, sharp eyes and thin lips, and a strikingly handsome chiseled face with a healthy tan complexion, exuding a strong male charm. It was no wonder Hua Yu was infatuated with him.
“What do you want her for?”
Sect Leader Hua asked, suppressing his anger.
“Sect Leader Hua, why ask what you already know? She and I are deeply in love, yet you’ve confined her. Tell me, should I not intervene?”
Cao Yang asked languidly, without any hostility on his face.
“Even if you are deeply in love, so what? You are not married, and have no formal standing. By what right do you interfere?”
Sect Leader Hua sneered.
“Haha, simply because our Cao family’s strength is greater than your Hua Rong Sect!”
Cao Yang laughed twice, then sat up from his chair.
“Heh heh…”
Sect Leader Hua smiled noncommittally and said, “So Young Master Cao intends to use force? The strength of the Hua Rong Sect is indeed inferior to the Cao family, but that is mostly reflected in the Immortal Tablets. If it truly came to a fight, you might not have an easy time of it.”
“Does Sect Leader Hua mean you wish for a pyrrhic victory?”
Cao Yang’s gaze turned cold.
“That depends on whether Young Master Cao is a man of his word. Your Cao family promised us a month to consider. Now, less than half a month has passed.”
Sect Leader Hua reminded him.
“A month was the Cao family’s final ultimatum to the Hua Rong Sect. Today, this young master has come specifically to give you an easy way out. Let me take her away, otherwise, once the deadline passes, you will lose more than just a disciple.”
Cao Yang demanded forcefully.
“And if I do not agree?”
Sect Leader Hua took a deep breath, then said sternly, “How dare a mere junior have the audacity to threaten this Sect Leader? Get out immediately, or you won’t be able to leave when I change my mind.”
“Sect Leader Hua, allow me to remind you, although Hua Yu is your disciple, this matter concerns the life and death of the entire Hua Rong Sect. Don’t you plan to seek the opinions of others? It would be a pity if a group of delicate women were to die like this!”
Cao Yang said with a grin.
“Yes, Sect Leader Hua, acting unilaterally will not end well. It will only alienate people from you.”
The Cao family elder who spoke earlier also chimed in.
“How dare you sow discord?”
Sect Leader Hua gritted his teeth in anger, a powerful spiritual sense already beginning to overflow from his body.
“Sect Leader Hua, don’t get excited. I’m not trying to sow discord, I just feel that since there’s a way to satisfy both sides, why must you insist on your own way? Why not discuss it with others?”
A hint of amusement appeared on Cao Yang’s face.
“What way is there to satisfy both sides?”
Sect Leader Hua frowned and asked.
“Didn’t Hua Yu tell you?”
Cao Yang looked surprised, then used a provocation: “You can ask her! Of course, if you don’t let her speak and continue to keep her confined, then I have nothing more to say.”
Sect Leader Hua showed hesitation, looking around. All the high-level figures and disciples were looking at him with imploring eyes, so he had no choice but to compromise: “Elder Zhou, go and bring Hua Yu here.”
“Yes, Sect Leader!”
Elder Zhou respectfully received the order and went to deliver the message.
“Could this method that Cao Yang mentioned be that ‘eating from one pot and sleeping in another’?”
Qi Huang transmitted by thought to Wang Shen.
“It must be. He is clearly prepared and deliberately created such a grand spectacle with the intention of using everyone’s influence to pressure Sect Leader Hua.”
Cheng Hong Ling concluded decisively.
“What a malicious intention! If we didn’t have the evidence in hand, Sect Leader Hua would likely have been completely alienated by her this time.”
Qi Huang said with lingering fear.
Not long after, Hua Yu was brought to the scene by Elder Zhou.
“Cao Lang, why are you here?”
As soon as Hua Yu saw Cao Yang, her eyes became hazy, her cheeks flushed, and she looked lovestruck.
“Yu’er, we are deeply in love. How could I bear to see you suffer here?”
Cao Yang’s expression immediately softened.
“But Master disagrees with us being together. What can I do?”
Hua Yu said plaintively.
“That’s because she doesn’t know the plan you came up with. Hurry and tell her.”
Cao Yang urged.
Hua Yu hesitated for a moment, then said to Sect Leader Hua, “Master, you disagree with me marrying into the Cao family, primarily because you don’t want the resources spent on me to go to waste, and you’re afraid that the Hua Rong Sect won’t have a decent disciple for its future, right?”
“Why ask what you already know!”
Sect Leader Hua said impatiently.
“Actually, I don’t want to sever ties with the Hua Rong Sect either. This is, after all, the place where I was born and raised!”
Hua Yu pretended to sigh emotionally, then said, “So I came up with a plan that satisfies both sides. As long as I marry into the Cao family and remain the Saintess of the Hua Rong Sect, then I can openly recruit from my maternal family. I don’t think Cao Lang would object, would he?”
“Of course. Am I the kind of narrow-minded person?”
Cao Yang immediately spoke generously. Having a beneficial “grandmother” to leech off of, he couldn’t be happier.
“Is this what you call satisfying both sides? You want to marry into the Cao family and also remain the Saintess of the Hua Rong Sect! What a blatant case of ‘eating from one pot and sleeping in another’! You’ve violated the sect rules, how can you still be qualified to be the Saintess?
Moreover, if you are untrustworthy, won’t this so-called maternal family become the Cao family’s plaything, to be taken advantage of at will?
Sect Leader Hua was so angry she almost laughed.
“Master, as your disciple, don’t you even trust your own disciple?”
Hua Yu said with deep pain.
“Hmph, this is of your own making. You swore a solemn oath before the Immortal Tablet not to marry, yet here you are, breaking your promise.”
Sect Leader Hua snorted coldly.
“Disciple had no choice. One cannot control who they fall in love with. I believe my fellow disciples within the sect who have someone they like can understand.”
Hua Yu cried out indignantly, then continued, “Even if you don’t believe me, you have to consider all the fellow disciples in the sect. This is currently the only way to resolve this matter peacefully.”
“Sect Leader Hua, allowing her to continue as the Saintess of the Hua Rong Sect is already the greatest concession I have made. If you still don’t know how to be content, then the next time I come, it won’t be with words, but with actions. I don’t know how many of these tens of thousands of disciples and millions of ordinary women in your Hua Rong Sect will survive.”
Cao Yang threatened.
Hearing this, the high-level figures and disciples of the Hua Rong Sect present all changed their expressions.
“Sect Leader, I actually think this plan is quite good. We won’t lose our Saintess, and we can also fulfill her wish to be with Cao Yang. It truly satisfies both sides.”
“Yes, I watched Hua Yu grow up. She is not someone who is ungrateful.”
“Sect Leader, let’s proceed as she says. You can’t sacrifice the millennia-old foundation of the Hua Rong Sect for just one person.”
The surrounding high-level figures persuaded her one after another, and the other disciples nodded in agreement.
Sect Leader Hua froze, wanting to reprimand them, but swallowed the words that were on her lips. A sense of desolation gradually grew in her heart. At this moment, she felt as if she had been abandoned by everyone.
Hua Yu’s lips curved slightly upwards. She knew that her and her lover’s scheme had worked.
Sect Leader Hua looked around, seeing the faces of her disciples filled with a desire for survival. Her inner resolve began to waver, and she opened her mouth to speak: “You…”
“What a traitorous little b*tch!”
However, at this moment, a female voice suddenly rang out.
Qi Huang followed the sound and saw Shi Yuqi rushing forward impetuously. It was clear she could no longer tolerate it.
“You are actually betraying your master for a man! Has your conscience been eaten by dogs?”
Shi Yuqi pointed at Hua Yu and scolded her fiercely.
“Senior Sister Shi, why do you say I am betraying Master? As the Head of Jade Peak, your words must be responsible.”
Hua Yu calmly retorted.
“Wanting evidence is not difficult!”
Shi Yuqi sneered repeatedly, then said in the direction of Cheng Hong Ling and Qi Huang: “Disciples, bring out the evidence for everyone present to see.”
